Dolly Frazier, Lavansville, has one feeder on her picnic table for the winter and two feeders on trees in the summer. All are seed feeders.

“There are 18 or more there right now,” she said. “I can see doves, blue jays and cardinals.”

She has been feeding wild birds for 10 years. She loves doing it, despite the cost.

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“I love birds; I love animals,” Frazier said. “I even had a groundhog for 10 years — it followed me around like a puppy and it rode with me in the car. I have three wild rabbits. I have a cockatiel in the house. When you love animals, they sense it.”

Grant Walker, Lake Stonycreek, has a close relationship with some birds, too. He put a bird feeder on his picnic table to fill it and some chickadees landed on the feeder and rode with it while it was hung up. He was filling a feeder under a tree and a chickadee sat at his hand. Another came to the bucket to get the seed before it was poured in the feeder. He puts out three feeders with mixed seed, a fourth with cracked corn and sunflower, and two suet holders. Once a day he also puts cracked corn under the bushes for doves.

“Whatever comes to eat, comes,” Walker said. “The other day, a rooster ringneck (pheasant) was here. A couple of years ago, we had several hens and a rooster.”

Walker has been feeding birds for 20 years. He had just come back from the feed store when he was interviewed by telephone. He had bought a 25-pound bag of seed, three 20-pound bags, 50 pounds of corn and four suet cakes. His feeders hold more than two gallons of seed and he has to refill them every other day.

“I enjoy seeing them,” he said. “My wife and I look out the windows and enjoy watching them.”

This is the time of year that it is important that birds eat a lot of high energy, high fat foods to stay warm, said Erin Estell, assistant director of the animal program at the National Aviary in Pittsburgh.

Birds shiver to increase their body metabolism and have to eat extra food because they are burning off more calories. Some species can grow additional feathers or fluff their feathers to create air pockets. Others are able to lower their metabolic rate.

“It’s not an easy lifestyle,” Estell said. “Sometimes you’ll see birds huddling on chimneys to stay warm. We encourage people to plant bushes so they have a habitat. They use bird houses not only for nesting, but to get out of the weather.”

She has one feeder filled with nyjer seed (also called thistle) that finches like. She also uses a basic wildbird seed mix. Sunflower seeds are important because they are high in fat. A lot of birds eat suet, especially when it is really cold. Woodpeckers also like to eat at peanut feeders.

“All kinds of feed are important to help birds stay warm and healthy,” Estell said. “It’s tougher for them to find water now. They can eat snow, but that takes energy for the bird to warm it to body temperature. Some people put out heated birdbaths.”

Some birds die every winter. The smaller species only have a life span of a few years. Hawks can live 20 to 30 years.

“That’s something else to keep in mind — if you put out bird feeders it may attract hawks that will eat birds,” she said. “They have to survive, too.”

The National Aviary has some birds that stay outdoors all year. Their diets are increased during the winter. It is OK to feed birds stale bread — whole wheat and whole grain are better for them than white bread. One kids’ activity done at the aviary is to take stale bagels, cover them with shortening or peanut butter, tie a string on it and hang it in a tree. Wild birds can’t survive on bread alone.

“It is true if you start feeding birds in the winter, you must continue through spring breeding season because they rely on you,” Estell said. “Buy high quality bird seed. If you get a bad bag that is old or moldy, they won’t eat it.”